Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama wants to establish a sovereign Muslim mini-state within his country based on the model of the Vatican. It would be created in Albania's capital Tirana and run by the ...

Albania's prime minister has revealed plans to establish a microstate for Sufi Muslims within the country's capital, Tirana. At the UN General Assembly last week, Prime Minister Edi Rama said the ...

TIRANA, Albania (AP) Pope Francis has called on moderate Muslims and all religious leaders to condemn Islamic extremists who "pervert" religion to justify violence, as he visited Albania and held it ...

Albania's Prime Minister wants to give a state and nationhood — similar to the Vatican in Italy — to a Muslim minority within the country. This is WEEKEND EDITION from NPR News. I'm Scott Simon. It's ...

A little-known Islamic sect is looking to establish its own state in Albania, equivalent to an Islamic Vatican City. There are over two billion Muslims in the world today, making up roughly a quarter ...

Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama announced on Sunday during his speech at the United Nations General Assembly’s Summit of the Future an ambitious initiative to create a Bektashi sovereign state within ...

Pope Francis meeting with Haxhi Baba Edmond Brahimaj of the Muslim Bektashi community and Rabbi Yoel Kaplan, Chief Rabbi of Albania, on Jan. 16, 2025. (Credit: Vatican Media.) Listen Did the pope ...

In Albania's capital, Baba Mondi envisions a Vatican-like state for his Bektashi faith on a tiny scrap of land that would serve as a model for love and tolerance. Last year, Albanian Prime Minister ...

Ever heard of the ‘Sovereign State of the Bektashi Order’? You most likely haven’t, at least not yet. But if all goes to plan, it will soon become the world’s ...

Behind Edi Rama’s announcement of a Vatican-type ‘microstate’ for the Bektashi movement in Tirana, some critics of his rule see a bid to distract attention from domestic scandals and win more ...

Many might find it difficult to believe that a Muslim-majority country sheltered and saved Jews during World War II; even ...

TIRANA, Albania -- Pope Francis called Sunday for Muslims and all religious leaders to condemn Islamic extremists who "pervert" religion to justify violence, as he visited Albania and held up the ...